HEAR FIRST 2. ASIAN MUSIC SPOTLIGHT BY DJ FABSABS

April 26, 2021

Pictured : JAUBI (Courtesy of Artist)

Written by : DJ Fabsabs

Hey guys, I’m back again for April! Hope you are going good and steady, and managing to get some parties in. What’s been on my radar over the last month in Asian indie music?

First stop Pakistan… MF DOOM is a sadly missed hip hop legend who passed away earlier this year, and first on my list this month is a tribute by Lahore based JAUBI. The jazz homage was inspired by Madvillain, Doom’s project with Madlib that counts among rap’s greatest ever albums.

Check out HEAR FIRST 1. Asian Music Spotlight by DJ Fabsabs!

Pictured : QQBBG (Courtesy of Artist)

Govi Dhaliwal is my main man bringing Punjabi rap to prominence in Hong Kong. The genre is massive in South Asia and across the world, and Hong Kong is at the heart of a new scene that many locals don’t know about. Check out his track with H$D Overseas. It’s been on my rotation plenty, along with the latest BANGER from the city’s original weirdo Kelvin T, the schizophrenic Whiskey Chocolate with cosplaying rapper QQBBG and Shanghai’s boy wonder Jiafeng. It’s an explosive statement of Kelvin T’s galvanizing force right now, and with more releases on the way, big things are expected.

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Pictured : Kimberly Road Union (Courtesy of Artist)

Hong Kong is bursting with talent right now, and there is plenty of pent-up energy ready to get out in the face of COVID restrictions and a repressive environment for expression. The collective 金巴利道路真理生命聯合 / Kimberly Road Union brings a unique lineup of musicians, from emo rocker Lok, to blues artist Tomii Chan, and electronic music maestro and producer Nerve, to deliver a project blending everything from jazz, screamo, leftfield electronica, folk and expansive journeys across many genres.

Left : Mong Tong 夢東 (Courtesy of Artist) // Right : YONLAPA

The style reminds me of the Taiwanese dream-pop band Mong Tong 夢東 representing the country’s indie music scene with its Buddhist drone sounds, indie rhythms, and tribal drums. It’s a sound that is uniquely Taiwan. Over in Thailand, YONLAPA is taking this dreaminess and infusing it with funk, psychedelia, love and talent, bringing a new sound from Chiang Mai.

Pictured : Dimas Saktya (Courtesy of Artist)

Indonesia is a country to watch carefully for its music flair. Jakarta based musician Dimas Saktya is igniting dance with his Swarsaktya project that blends house, electro, space disco, rock and tribal rhythms in the way that is unmistakably underground and yet booty shaking ready. Indonesia’s indie scene is quietly taking its place among the best in Asia.

Top : Nhạc Gãy (Courtesy of Artist) // Bottom : Kalibr+

In Vietnam, Nhạc Gãy Tổng Hợp Số 1 is an intriguing compilation of bangers across techno, gabber, idm, vinahouse, industrial, hip-hop, breakbeat from the country’s music producers. It’s a seriously impressive range, and sign that we should be expecting more very soon. The compilation brought to mind a similarly striking compilation album released by Kalibr+, an introduction of artists from the Gulf state of Kuwait demonstrating strong breadth of talent, electronic genres and the surprise that we had never heard of any of these artists (well, me at least!).

Pictured : Foodman (Courtesy of Artist)

On the esoteric end of the spectrum, Foodman is back with this abstract footwork with an album expected in July. For the initiated, Footwork fuses ghetto house, hip hop and drum n bass to powerful effect. The Nagoya-based Foodman last made an appearance with Machi no gomi in May 2020 that was more of an overdriven techno floor shaker, and this one sounds like it will be more abstract.

Catch you later SPITGAN gang!